Fetal's Suspension

As folks may or may not know, Sunday night, 2-2-03, Fetal was suspended from posting for 30 days. The "last straw" was in the "Kurt Browning and Sonia are Expecting Thread" (see below). I don't know if this is okay to discuss. If not, Paula or Joe, let me know and no problem closing down this thread. I know I will ask to have this thread closed down if it turns into a "let's bash Fetal" thing. However, if people have non-bashing thoughts on it, perhaps it is worth discussing. OTOH, perhaps not. We shall see.

Personally, I like Fetal a lot. But things that I would say to him in a personal e-mail or chat I would NEVER say on the board. I don't see it as being phony; I just see it as respecting the social rules of GS. An artist does have to be him/herself, no matter what that is and not matter whether it offends people or not. Oscar Wilde and James Joyce are just two examples of artists who were denigrated and exiled for their views. They were popular for some of their works and views; they were outcasts because of others. But posting on GS is not making art. It's social interaction and discussion about figure skating and other topics. I love Fetal's unique view on things and I don't think Paula is interfering with his "freedom of speech" in any way. With freedom comes responsibility. Fetal has posted for many months without going over the line (or barely going over the line ). Very little actually offends me and although Fetal's posts did not offend me per se--actually, they never even came close to offending me:smokin: --I knw they were offending certain GSers. How many, I have no idea. I'm sorry this happened but Paula did warn Fetal. Being an outspoken, opinionated person myself, I can relate to Fetal's situation, but I think Paula did the right thing--and I also think she gave Fetal a very long leash and tried to talk to him nicely about toning it down. Maybe she could have deleted more posts first, but ultimately, Paula is the boss. I hope Fetal comes back because besides the obvious humor he adds to GS, he starts a lot of interesting and provocative thread topics and contributes same in posts. So I guess this is to say, "I love ya, Fetal, but unless we are in our clean well-lighted space making our own art, there are the social standards of the group to consider." OTOH, I also think some people took Fetal too seriously. You can always just not read his posts. Of course I hope Fetal comes back and after sleeping on it last night, I am also hoping that perhaps Paula will reconsider and reduce Fetal's sentence to two weeks.
Rgirl

***************************************

Last Straw Post and Paula's Suspension:

FetalAttraction
Re: Brownings expecting baby #1 in July!
Posted: 2/1/03 5:56:42 pm
Now that Kurt has fathered two babies (his wife and Scott's wife, like sure it's actually Scott's), will he please knock up Yuka Sato, too? Kurt and Yuka can have super skating babies! The babies will do quad axels by 9 and have artistry that makes Torville and Dean seem deaf by 12. Imagine the possibilities!

Buddha, Allah, Jesus and Jeffrey Buttle, I swear I'll pretend you all exist and can do triple axels if your followers promise not to kick me off the message board or crash planes into my house.

Re: Fetal's Suspension

Re: Fetal's Suspension

Awww phooey :rolleyes: (this feels reminiscent of the old FSW board mindset.) Fetal's ability to shock may be incendiary for some from time to time, but in my opinion his/her twisted wit and screwy vision is an important part of this board's appeal for me - brilliantly perverted, entertaining, and always thought-provoking. I am continually amazed whether I agree with his/her position or not

People talk about "going over the top" - so where exactly is 'the top'? It must certainly be higher for me, and I'm considerably older than Fetal. Granted, I've not been here long (and may not stay after hearing this), but I have never been offended by Fetal. Ever. (On the other hand, I have been offended by those same poster(s) who seem to me to chase Fetal around to chastise him/her, or start a thread just trying to cause trouble.) Any purging to be done, do it there I say.

Re: Fetal's Suspension

I would prefer to see posts deleted rather than have a poster suspended (unless of course they are a very annoying poster who "demonizes" everyone and threatens to sue the board - chuckle<img border=0 src="http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/images/emoticons/laugh.gif" /><img border=0 src="http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/images/emoticons/tongue.gif" />). Generally, I am against censorship. This is not my board and I realize they want to keep things enjoyable for everyone, so in some cases The Powers That Be may feel the need to delete a post and I can live with that.

Re: Fetal's Suspension

Add me to the Free Fetal protest group. I enjoy Fetal's off the wall sense of humor, and this would be a dull, dull forum and an even duller world without him. Just delete the post if you think it goes over the edge of the acceptable.

Re: Fetal's Suspension

Generally, I've been fine with Fetal's posts, but must admit that he can go too far for some people. If anything lately, he seems to have been deliberately yanking on some peoples' chains. I have a suspicion that he may have driven some people off.

Since he had been dually warned, it certainly seems appropriate.

I hope Fetal does come back since his caustic wit is a change of pace from gushing. He does provide valuable insight, too.

Re: Fetal's Suspension

I agree with heyang about Fetal deliberately pulling peoples' chains lately. But there is also the fact that it was done to people who couldn't deal with Fetal's sense of humor. I think Fetal's posts are brilliant and I agree with the good majority of what he says. Some people cannot deal with other peoples' opinions and resort to calling them out. Fetal, OTOH, has always stood by his own beliefs and never backed down when called upon.

I don't really agree with banning Fetal for 30 days. I'm wondering if it was the post itself, or maybe Fetal's sigline. Whatever the case is I think that the post could have been deleted.

Fetal may upset some by bringing up his ideas about religion, but what about those who flaunt their devout religious beliefs? Maybe they should be asked to tone it down too.

Re: Fetal's Suspension

I'm taking the Polyanna approach and telling myself that Fetal is simply on an extended vacation without internet access...here's to hoping he returns to share with us his wit, intellect, insight, humor, and everything else we know "Fetal"...

Re: Fetal's Suspension

1. For this particular post, the place where I think Fetal stepped over the line was his reference to Yuka Sato. If he had said, Kurt needs to knock up ***** ******** or ******* *****-****, I'd say, yeah, ha ha, put a bag over her head and go ahead on. But now, seriously, look at this face.

Does this look like a person who is even remotely thinking about compromising the sanctity of her wedding vows? No, she does not. For shame, Fetal.

2. Do children read this board? This is a family-friendly mostly G-rated discussion group, with regular posters from older teenagers to at least one great-grandparent. Pre-teen skating fans surely prefer to go to fan sites of their favorite skater, such as the Michelle Kwan Forum. The MKF has a responsibility to keep their act clean, and to kick off people who delight in questionable double entendres, etc.

But most of the topics discussed on Golden Skate are not of interest to children. (I considered changing my "parental controls" on myself to see if ANY skating board came up as a no-no for young children. But I was afraid I might not be able to change it back -- you know how AOL is -- and THEN look at the fix I'd be in.)

I might be wrong about this, but I bet that no parent has EVER contacted Paula to complain that his or her child went to Golden Skate and found something naughty there. (Unless they followed some of the links that Fetal has provided, such as the recent one featuring the "J***-off to Kate Jackson" fake nude photo gallery.)

Hmm. Come to think of it, Fetal, you ARE kind of naughty after all.

3. Does Fetal annoy and offend people? Well, he certainly tries his darnedest. When a person's signature line says, in effect, "Yes, I'm trying to offend you, you idiot" -- well, we can't say we weren't warned. Some readers may remember a long running argument between Fetal and me about the existence of God. Many people who cherish their religious convictions were greatly offended -- by Fetal for sure and probably by me as well. I THINK I fought him to a draw. (I'm not entirely sure about that -- Fetal made some telling points and sound argumentation, even though it was presented wrapped in Fetal's own inimitable sarcastic wit.)

I was not offended in the least by this discussion. I never felt that Fetal was being disrespectful of ME, however much he might have ridiculed my OPINIONS about things.

On the other hand, I have received several PMs from other GS members thanking me for "standing up to Fetal" because they (the other members) were afraid to say anything lest Fetal's malevolence turn on them. And you have to admit that when Fetal is on a roll he posts a LOT and he expresses his opinions, so to speak, very LOUDLY.

4. Bottom line. Paula's the boss. It is her responsibility to set the standards of Golden Skate. Fetal was warned over and over that he was treading too heavily along the line between what was just sort of unacceptable and what was really, really unacceptable under the GS protocols. This isn't a democracy, folks. If you don't like it, start your own board. (Come to think of it, Fetal DID start his own web site/ museum.) Three cheers for Paula. She acted upon her convictions with both firmness and compassion. We ask nothing more.

See you in March, Fetal -- Just in time for the Grand Prix Finals and Worlds!

Re: Fetal's Suspension

I'm sorry but I was just thinking about quitting this board because of him. If you think I was flaunting my religion say so. It seemed to me this was becoming a heathen board and I don't want anything to do with that. I hope he never comes back.

Re: Fetal's Suspension

Re: Fetal's Suspension

Granny, Now don't you go anywhere, OK? You are worth about 49 Fetals and about 216 Mathmen, to this board.

On any public forum there are going to be people who say outrageous things. I would say, to hell with 'em, except that I don't use that kind of language. Nothing anyone says can undermine the foundation of sincere faith, so who cares what people say?